What is a lay Marist? What is a prophet? What is a mystic?

Days 3 and 4 were so jam packed, that I’ve waited a day or two (losing track of time here) to write about them. We heard from 3 Marist Brothers on the following themes: Presence of laypeople: new beginning, bring together on mission, and dimensions of the charism. Br. Emili, Br. Joao, and Br. Antonio worked through these topics with us during these days.

Br. Emili took us through a historical narrative of how laypeople have become present in the Marist Institute. The language he used made it clear that laypeople are a part of it, and are contributing to a shared future.  A clear starting point was Vatican II, where the Church spoke increasingly about laypeople as an active part of its body.

The “crisis”, as he described it, of diminishing numbers of vowed religious is “providential”. Some might ask why? Br. Emili made it clear that there is a need for the Institute to move forward “Going in haste” as Mary did to a “new horizon”. So although there may be fewer brothers, there is no shortage of hope for the future.

Throughout his comments, the theme of “togetherness” continually came up. The rising up of lay Marists in provinces worldwide is not a safety plan for helping the Marist Brothers as the number of brothers decreases. It is a genuine response to a call, a sense of belonging, and a settling into the place that they feel is right for them in the Church.

A lay Marist, in this sense, is any person who feels connected to the ideas and values that comprise the Marist charism. This person wants to and does connect with the Institute and other like minded Marists to live our this charism as individuals and a community. This is by no means a FULL definition. It is my reflection.

The concepts of being prophets and mystics came up during Br. Emili’s remarks as well. This theme that came up during the 2013 General Chapter, was also present during the II International Marists In Mission Assembly in Nairobi. What does this mean? A prophet is not a fortune teller or person that sees into the future. In the Marist world, I believe a prophet to be someone who examines the contemporary moment, evaluating needs and circumstances. They have foresight (not the same as telling the future LOL) and use that to lead a community through this moment. To be a mystic would mean to have a deep awareness of one’s own life, spirituality, and relationship with God. It is a call to greater contemplation.

So what is the call from this session? In short: generate strategies that promote and accompany the vocational journeys of all Marists. That’s a paraphrase from the slides and my notes. While the presence of laypeople has been with the Marist Institute for decades, the amount of people who are Marist has grown tremendously. How do we become even more a part of the fold, to grow and be formed as lay Marists?

That’s a BIG question which differs from province to province… based on needs. So that’s the bigger question? What are the needs of lay Marists in the US, so that they can continue to be formed, live out their Christian vocation in the world, and share the Marist charism in their workplaces and families?

“What structure or form does this take?” was asked several times. Br. Emili did not answer this directly, in order not to impose on people’s plans or impede their own work. He did say that we needed to be led by the Holy Spirit in each of our provinces to create whatever is needed for that province. So identification of the various needs and desires of lay Marists in the United States seems to be a key.

More to come.

-Luis